Awadh (Awadhi, Hindi: अवध, Urdu: ‫) اودھ‬also known in various British historical

texts as Oudh, Oundh, or Oude, is a region in the centre of the modern Indian state
of Uttar Pradesh, which was before Independence known as the United Provinces of
Agra and Oudh. The traditional capital of Awadh has been Lucknow, the capital of the
modern day Uttar Pradesh. The modern definition of Awadh geographically includes
the districts of Ambedkar Nagar, Bahraich, Balrampur, Barabanki, Faizabad, Gonda,
Hardoi, Lakhimpur Kheri, Lucknow, Pratapgarh, Allahabad, Raebareli, Shravasti,
Sitapur, Sultanpur, Unnao and Kanpur.A strip of the northern areas of the region now
lies within Nepal. The region is home to a distinct dialect, Awadhi, spoken by Awadhis.

Contents

• 1 Ancient
• 2 Under the Mughals
• 3 Under the Nawabs of Awadh
o 3.1 The British influence
• 4 Under the British
• 5 Culture
• 6 Awadhi cuisine
• 7 In popular culture

Ancient

Awadh's political unity can be traced back to the ancient Hindu kingdom of Kosala,
with Ayodhya as its capital. Modern Awadh finds historical mention only in the time of
Akbar, in the late 16th century.

In prehistoric Awadh, the kingdom of Rama, contained five main divisions, viz :-

1. Uttara Kosala or the trans-Ghaghra districts, now known as Bahraich, Gonda,

Basti and Gorakhpur.
2. Silliana, consisting of lower range of hills to the north of Uttara Kosala, now
belonging to Nepal, with tarai at its base.
3. Pachhimrath, which may be roughly described as the country between
Ghaghra and Gomti west to the line from Ayodhya to Sultanpur. This division
included about third of present district of Faizabad(including Ambedkarnagar), a
small portion of the north of Sultanpur, greater part of Barabanki, and sections
of the Lucknow and Sitapur districts.
4. Purabrath, which may be roughly described as the country between Ghaghra
and Gomti east to the line from Ayodhya to Sultanpur. This division included
about two-thirds of present district of Faizabad(including Ambedkarnagar), a the
north-eastern corner of Sultanpur, and parts of Azamgarh and Jaunpur.
5. Arbar, extended soutwards Gomti to the Sai river.

Under the Mughals

From the pre-historic period to the time of Akbar, the limits of the province and its
internal divisions seem to have been constantly changing, and the name of Oudh, or
Awadh, seems to have been only applicable only to one of the ancient divisions or
Sarkars, nearly corresponding to old Pachhimrath. The title of Subedar of Awadh is
mentioned as early as 1280 A.D., but it can only have denoted the governor of the
tract of the country above defined.
The Awadh of Akbar was one of the twelve (or fifteen) subahs into which he divided
the Mughal Empire as it stood in the year 1590 A.D. As constituted at the end of
sixteenth century, the Subah contained five sarkars, viz. Awadh, Lucknow, Bahraich,
Khairabad and Gorakhpur, and these, again were devided in numerous mahals and
dasturs.

Khan Zaman Khan Ali Asghar son of Qazi Ghulam Mustafa was appointed as Subahdar
of Awadh during the reign of Farrukhsiyar. This appointment was made in place of
‘Aziz Khan Chughtai’[2]. Later on, Mahabat Khan was appointed as Subahdar of Awadh
in place of Khan Zaman Khan Ali Asghar who was all over again transferred to
Azimabad (Patna) as Subahdar in place of ‘Sar Buland Khan’ [3].

It seems to have been of nearly the same extent as the Province of Oudh at the time
of annexation to British India in 1858, and to have differed only in including
Gorakhpur, Basti, and Azamgarh, and in excluding Tanda, Aldemau, and Manikpur, or
the territory to the east and South of Faizabad, Sultanpur, and Pratapgarh.[4]

Under the Nawabs of Awadh

Safdarjung, the second Nawab of Awadh, Mughal dynasty. India. early 18th century

Saadat Khan Burhanul Mulk was appointed Nawab in 1722 and established his court in
Faizabad[5] near Lucknow. He took advantage of a weakening Mughal Empire in Delhi
to lay the foundation of the Awadh dynasty. His successor was Safdarjung the very
influential noble at the Mughal court in Delhi. Until 1819, Awadh was a province of the
Mughal Empire administered by a Nawab.

Awadh was known as the granary of India and was important strategically for the
control of the Doab, the fertile plain between the Ganges and the Yamuna rivers. It
was a wealthy kingdom, able to maintain its independence against threats from the
Marathas, the British and the Afghans.

The third Nawab, Shuja-ud-Daula fell out with the British after aiding Mir Qasim the
fugitive Nawab of Bengal. He was comprehensively defeated in the Battle of Buxar by
the British East India Company, after which he was forced to pay heavy penalties and
cede parts of his territory.

The British appointed a resident in 1773, and over time gained control of more
territory and authority in the state. They were disinclined to capture Awadh outright,
because that would bring them face to face with the Marathas and the remnants of
the Mughal Empire.

The fourth Nawab Asaf-Ud-Dowlah shifted his capital from Faizabad to Lucknow and
laid the foundation of a great city. His rule saw the building of the Asafi Imambara and
Rumi Darwaza, built by Raja Tikait Rai Nawab Wazir (Diwan) of Awadh, which till date
are the biggest architectural marvels in the city.

In 1798, the fifth Nawab Wazir Ali Khan alienated both his people and the British, and
was forced to abdicate. The British then helped Saadat Ali Khan to the throne. Saadat
Ali Khan was a puppet king, who in the treaty of 1801 ceded half of Awadh to the
British East India Company and also agreed to disband his troops in favour of a hugely
expensive, British-run army. This treaty effectively made part of the state of Awadh a
vassal to the British East India Company, though they continued to be part of the
Mughal Empire in name till 1819.

The wars and transactions in which Shuja-ud-Daulawas engaged, both with and
against the British East India Company, led to the addition of Karra, Allahabad,
Fatehgarh, Kanpur, Etawah, Mainpuri, Farrukhabad, Rohilkhand, to the Oudh
dimensions, and thus they remained until the traty of 1801 with Saadat Ali Khan, by
which province was reduced considerably as half of Oudh was ceded to the British
East India Company. Khairigarh, Kanchanpur, and what is now the Nepal Terai were
ceded in 1816, in liquidation of Ghazi ud din Haider's loan of a million sterling towards
the expense of Nepal war; and at the same time pargana of Nawabganj was added to
Gonda district in exchange for Handia, or Kawai, which was transferred from
Pratapgarh to Allahabad.[6]

The British influence

The treaty of 1801 formed an arrangement that was very beneficial to the Company.
They were able to use Awadh's vast treasuries, repeatedly digging into them for loans
at reduced rates. In addition, the revenues from running Awadh's armed forces
brought them useful revenues while it acted as a buffer state. The Nawabs were
ceremonial kings, busy with pomp and show but with little influence over matters of
state. By the mid-19th century, however, the British had grown impatient with the
arrangement and wanted direct control. They started looking about for an excuse,
which the decadent Nawabs readily provided.

Under the British

United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, 1903

In 1856 the East India Company first moved its troops to the border, then annexed the
state, which was placed under a chief commissioner - Sir Henry Lawrence. Wajid Ali
Shah, the then Nawab, was imprisoned, and then exiled by the Company to Calcutta.
In the subsequent Revolt of 1857 his 14 year old son Birjis Qadra was crowned ruler.
Sir Henry was killed in the hostilities. Following the rebellion's defeat, Qadra and other
rebel leaders obtained asylum in Nepal.

Those company troops who were recruited from the state, along with some of the
nobility of the state, were major players in the events of 1857. The rebels took control
of Awadh, and it took the British 18 months to reconquer the region, a period which
included the famous Siege of Lucknow. Oudh was placed back under a chief
commissioner, and was governed as a British province.

The Tarai to the north of Bahraich including large quantity of valuable forest and
grazing ground, was made over to the Nepal Darbar in 1860, in recognition of their
services during the Revolt of 1857, and in 1874 some further cessions, on a much
smaller scale, but without any apparent reason, were made in favour of the same
Government.

In 1877 the offices of lieutenant-governor of the North-Western Provinces and chief

commissioner of Oudh were combined in the same person; and in 1902, when the new
name of United Provinces of Agra and Oudh was introduced, the title of chief
commissioner was dropped, though Oudh still retained some marks of its former
independence.
Regions of Uttar Pradesh

Culture

The region of Awadh is considered to be the center of Ganga-Jamuni culture.

Awadhi cuisine

Awadhi cuisine

Kebabs are an important part of Awadhi cuisine

Awadhi Cuisine is primarily from the city of Lucknow and its environs. The cooking
patterns of the city are similar to those of Central Asia, the Middle East, and Northern
India as well. The cuisine consists of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes.
Awadh has been greatly influenced by Mughal cooking techniques, and the cuisine of
Lucknow bears similarities to those of Kashmir, Punjab and Hyderabad; and the city is
famous for its Nawabi foods.

The bawarchis and rakabdars of Awadh gave birth to the dum style of cooking or the
art of cooking over a slow fire, which has become synonymous with Lucknow today.[9]
Their spread would consist of elaborate dishes like kebabs, kormas, biryani, kaliya,
nahari-kulchas, zarda, sheermal,Taftan, roomali rotis and warqi parathas. The richness
of Awadh cuisine lies not only in the variety of cuisine but also in the ingredients used
like mutton, paneer, and rich spices including cardamom and saffron.

In popular culture

The events surrounding the 1856 overthrow of Wajid Ali Shah and the annexation of
Awadh by the British are depicted in the 1977 film The Chess Players (Shatranj Ke
Khilari) by the acclaimed Indian director Satyajit Ray.

The movies of Umrao Jaan are based on two principal cities of Awadh Lucknow and
Faizabad.

The region has been in the center of various period films of Bollywood and modern
films like Main, Meri Patni Aur Woh and Paa to name a few.It has also have been shot
in various songs of Bollywood.